BOOM—!
The tranquility of Uruk's morning was abruptly shattered by a deafening explosion.
Yet, the citizens of Uruk—including the soldiers—reacted with familiar indifference. They continued their daily routines, at most muttering something like "there she goes again."
At this moment, the central section of the royal palace—the heart of Uruk's authority—had become nothing more than rubble.
BOOM!
Another blast of light crashed down from the sky, pulverizing the remaining piles of debris.
Only when the scattered rubble covering her was blown away by this second explosion did Ophis slowly come back to herself, turning her gaze upward toward the sky.
"So, how was it? Did you feel my scorching love?"
Sitting leisurely in the air upon a ship resembling two massive bows fused together was none other than Ishtar.
No—given its firepower, rather than a ship, calling it a divine bow doubling as a mount seemed more appropriate.
"What do you want?"
If Ophis hadn't spoken, everything would've been fine—but hearing Ophis respond, Ishtar immediately cried out in astonishment.
"You actually answered?"
She'd bombarded the palace relentlessly every single morning, for more than three months straight, without eliciting a single reply—unless counter-blasting her with magic cannons counted.
Over time, even the guards who'd initially rushed to the scene had stopped bothering. Yet now, Ophis—who'd never acknowledged her directly—had spoken to her?
"You've reached your limit?"
"Hah?"
Ophis stared up at Ishtar with her faint, slightly unsettling smile.
"Ishtar… Today is your final day, isn't it?"
"Oh? So, you really did notice? I always had a feeling that your perceptiveness was remarkably high."
Ishtar's expression didn't change much; she merely waved dismissively.
"I really don't know what got into that old hag Gaia—desperately accelerating the gods' sealing process—it's beyond annoying. My strength is undoubtedly vast, but even I'm no match for Mother Gaia when she's determined."
Ophis remained silent.
She wasn't familiar with Gaia, nor did she understand the other's intentions. She had no comment on that matter.
"Then—how does it look?"
Ophis lightly leapt up from the crater Ishtar created, landing gracefully on the palace rooftop.
"Ah, right."
Ishtar jumped down from her flying ship, the Boat of Heaven, Maanna, standing beside Ophis to overlook all of Uruk.
Honestly, Uruk wasn't particularly appealing right now—construction sites sprawled everywhere.
Expanding the perimeter, restructuring the interior; using resources seized from conquered cities, Ophis was entirely remaking Uruk.
Inside was being rebuilt along the lines of a modern city, while outside was becoming a heavily fortified bastion.
With eyesight far superior to ordinary humans, both clearly saw troops training and preparing defenses on the outskirts.
The current size of Uruk's army far surpassed even the largest city-states in Mesopotamia at this time.
All of this was preparation for an imminent war.
"You've done a pretty good job, huh? Even if it doesn't look like much now, it'll surely become prosperous in the future. When war engulfs such a place—it'll be a rather beautiful sight, won't it?"
With her goddessly wisdom (?), Ishtar naturally recognized Ophis was preparing for war. Although she didn't know the enemy's identity, it didn't stop her, as a goddess of war, from happily imagining the chaos.
Naturally, Ophis ignored this twisted taste of the goddess of love and war.
After Enkidu's disappearance, though Ophis no longer completely isolated herself from the world, she still had no intention of responding to anything she considered pointless.
"I have something I want your help with."
"Oh? Now that's surprising. You actually asking someone for help?"
Ishtar covered her mouth with one hand, feigning surprise, though it was obvious she was already thinking how to benefit from this request.
Then, she noticed the red staff Ophis held carefully in her arms.
"Tell me, then. Since this goddess is in a rather good mood today, helping you out a little isn't impossible, you know?"
"Can you grant consecutive good harvests for the lands south of Uruk, as much as possible?"
"…Hah?"
Giving Ophis a strange look, Ishtar frowned slightly.
"Though I doubt you're unaware, too much ease and prosperity will corrupt your people, you know? Well, personally, I don't really care…"
"It's fine."
Seeing Ophis so insistent, Ishtar didn't bother arguing, merely shrugging her shoulders.
"Well, I am curious about why you're doing this. The world's rejection of me is already extremely strong. Even exhausting my full power, I can only guarantee about three years of good harvests—and at the price of one year of severe famine afterward. Is that alright?"
"That's enough."
Ophis nodded. Her goal was to secure sufficient supplies to sustain a war. As for afterward… there probably wouldn't be any need for grain by then, anyway.
Staring at Ophis, Ishtar sighed heavily, somewhat reluctantly.
"Can't be helped. Just this once, I'll lend you a hand—after all, today really is my 'last day.'"
"Thank you."
Facing Ophis's clear, earnest eyes, Ishtar awkwardly averted her gaze.
"You only look at me properly in moments like these… Seriously, you're not cute at all."
Jumping back aboard her heavenly boat, Ishtar glanced at Ophis again.
Really, to think I couldn't even get her genuinely interested in me right until the end…
"Listen up. You owe me one for this! And someday, I'll definitely come collect!"
Though what began as possessiveness had devolved into mere stubbornness, Ishtar still wasn't willing to let go.
The gods were whimsical, yet stubborn to the end.
Meeting Ishtar's eyes directly, Ophis nodded seriously.
Receiving assistance and paying a price—this was only natural.
With Ophis watching silently, Ishtar flew toward the farmland south of Uruk. Her form gradually dissolved into sparkling particles of light, scattering gently onto the earth.
"Oh, and next time—remember to call me Ishta!"
Her voice echoed between heaven and earth as her final words.
Watching as Ishtar honorably exited the stage, Ophis leapt down from the palace roof, landing at its main entrance, where the priestess-girl was already waiting.
Lately, the priestess-girl had become increasingly adept at her secretary-like duties.
"Abandon the farmland in the north. Move everything south, including the livestock herders. Redistribute the southern lands accordingly. Ignore any complaints."
Since she'd been extensively recruiting soldiers, insufficient farmland wasn't an issue—though farmers themselves might become scarce.
"At your will."
The priestess-girl had already stopped trying to understand the king's intentions.
Nodding once, Ophis turned around… and found herself staring at her palace, now partially reduced to rubble in multiple places.
"Demolish this place. Rebuild it as a disaster shelter. From now on, I'll live in the Grand Temple."
"Your—eh?! Wait a moment, please!"
Ignoring the priestess-girl's astonishment, Ophis disappeared instantly, leaving the girl alone and utterly bewildered.
"A disaster shelter…? Disaster?"